Sarnia Observer: 2008 February 15
The $40 million announced Thursday for new library staff in Ontario's elementary schools, won't translate into a single librarian locally, school boards say.
"The intention is a good one and we'll make the best use that we can of the money," said Paul Wubben, education director for the St. Clair Catholic District School Board.
But his board's share of the funding amounts to $99,950 in each of the next four years.
"With 30 elementary schools in our district, you can see that won't go far," Wubben said.
Funding shortages prompted the Catholic board to chop teacher librarians in the mid-90s, replacing them with library technicians in nearly every school.
Technicians keep the libraries functioning but don't teach library skills to the students, Wubben said.
"They don't teach how to do research or teach lessons from fiction and non-fiction books. There's very little interaction between the technicians and the students."
The new money will likely help the board maintain library technicians, Wubben added.
"With declining enrolment, it's more and more difficult to find the money for that."
The Lambton Kent District School Board will receive $138,245 in each of the next four years as a result of Premier Dalton McGuinty's announcement.
The public board's education director Gayle Stucke said that won't go far.
